Month: May 2017

The Chester County Planning Commission has some exciting news to share as it continues to advance development of Landscapes3, the next comprehensive plan for the county, with the help of partners, stakeholders, and the public. As part of this process, the agency released a public survey today to gather additional input about the plan from county residents and anyone interested in the future of Chester County.

“Public input is critical for making Landscapes3 the best plan possible,” said Chester County Planning Commission Executive Director Brian O’Leary. “Your input will help determine the vision and priorities for the county.”

The survey seeks to gather feedback on several issues, including growth, open space and environment, sense of place, modern infrastructure, transportation, the economy, healthy lifestyles, and housing options. It will be available to the public for about a month. Click here to participate in the survey.

Karen Marshall landed the position she had long admired as heritage preservation coordinator for Chester County while–as the saying goes–she was busy making other plans.

Karen’s passion for preservation and historic districts became her profession later in life after working as a marketing consultant for TV stations throughout the country. Even while she was a marketer, she still gravitated toward the historic districts in different states and did some work for cultural and historical organizations. For instance, she was a performance coordinator for the President’s Office at the College of Charleston in South Carolina and she was also a marketing consultant for historic and cultural sites in Baltimore, Maryland.

But Chester County was her favorite place by far. She had been attending Chester County Day, an annual house tour organized by the Women’s Auxiliary to Chester County Hospital that features historic homes and gardens, for years before moving here. Continue Reading →

Public engagement for Landscapes3 has occurred in a variety of ways in recent months — stakeholder meetings, topic specific surveys, presentations to more than 20 groups, and outreach at community events (check our calendar for where we’ll be next) — and we will be launching our public survey on May 15. The public survey is an interactive, highly visual survey that asks about priorities and preferences for the future of Chester County. As we get ready for that survey, here’s a look back at the logistical details on our topic specific surveys from 2016: Continue Reading →

Chester County Planning Commission Executive Director Brian O’Leary and officials from two local townships received awards from Governor Tom Wolf for their dedication to strengthening communities and providing assistance to residents.

“It’s a great honor receiving this award along with the other honorees, and it’s wonderful to see the state acknowledge the work done by so many people at the local level to improve our communities,” Brian said.

Brian, along with East Goshen and Kennett townships, were among 10 government officials and 11 communities from across Pennsylvania that received awards in Harrisburg on April 12 as part of the 21st Annual Governor’s Awards for Local Government Excellence. Continue Reading →

The Chester County Planning Commission will be hosting a Commercial Landscapes Symposium from 4 p.m.-6 p.m. June 7 at the Penn State Great Valley campus. The planning series focuses on trends and potential strategies to address changes in retail centers, office parks, transit centers, and old industrial properties around the county.

The featured speaker will be James Cook, the Americas Director of Retail Research at Jones Lang Lasalle, who will discuss the future of commercial real estate in Chester County and the Philadelphia region. There also will be a panel discussion with experts. Click here to register for the event.